Means for facilitating casting and drawing fish-nets



f N0.74s,710. PATENTED mm, 1904.

" L. EINARSON.

MEANS FORTAGI LITA TI NG OASTING AND DRAWING FISH NETS APPLIOATIONIIILBD M AY 2a, 1902;

no MODEL.

' WITNESSES IN VENTOR.

UNITED STATES Patented January 5, 1904.

PATENT OEEIoE.

LUTHER EmARsomoE SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.

MEANS FOR FACILITATING CASTING AND DRAWING FISH-NETS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 748,710, dated January 5, 1904.

Application filedMay 23, 1902. $erial 110.108.705. (N model.)

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, LUTHER EINARSON, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of the city of Seattle, in the county of King and State of Washington, have invented certain-new and useful Improvements in Means to Facilitate (lasting and Drawing Fish-Nets, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to means whereby a fish-net may be more expeditiously and conveniently cast out from a boat and more easily and quickly drawn in.

Among numerous objects attained by this invention and readily understood from the following specification and accompanying drawings included as a part thereof, is the production of a simple and inexpensive device adapted to facilitate the handling of fishnets in casting and drawing and embodying essential features of utility, adaptability, and

general efficiency, which materially reduces the labor required to tend a fish-net, render the task of casting and drawing same less dangerous and disagreeable, and makes it possible to safely land the net in stormy weather over the pointed end of a boat.

The above-mentioned and numerous other objects equally as desirable are attained by the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts. as disclosed on the drawings, set forth in this specification, and succinctly pointed out in the appended claims.

Withreference to the drawings filed herewith and bearing like reference characters for corresponding parts throughout, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device indicated in position on the stern portion of a doubleended boat, and Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the bracket-stand employed to support the bearing-bar of the device and indicates the socket-plate for said bracket in relative position and shown in transverse section.

Before proceeding to set up any preferred embodiment of my invention the difficulties and dangers attending the casting and drawing of large fish-nets, such as employed in the vocation known as gill-netting, will be comprehensively set forth, so that the utility of this device may be -more clearly marked and its application readily understood. has much as this form of fishing is largely carried on at night and from small boats, the hanwhen fishing from a double-ended boat, as

the net employed is heavy and unwieldy to handle and it requires extreme care and prolonged time to guide it free of the gunwale at the point of the stern when the net is cast and drawn and on which it is oftentimes torn. In stormy weather it is almost impossible to land the netin the boat and lay it with the corks and leads clear, so that when again cast the net will play outproperly, and it has heretofore been oftentimes necessary to cut the net adrift from the boat to save the lives of the fishermen, owing to the length of time red uired to draw in the net. With these difiiculties in View my aim has been to provide a simple and compactly-arranged device I which shall act to support the net clear of the gunwale during its passage to and from the boat and which may be readily adjusted to act as either an inboard or outboard hearing to thus carry the net and shall be removable, so that it may be stored away when not in use.

In the present embodiment the device includes a cylindrical bearing-bar, as 10, of considerable length and comparatively small diameter and which is preferably of Wood as best suited to avoid injuring the net and as'now considered is formed with a guardflange, as at 11, at each end of greater diameter than the bar and likewise composed of wood and rendered with the inner side surface conical, so as to better serve to prevent portions of the net from leaving the bar as passed thereover, and thereby insure delivery thereof free of the gunwale of the boat.

As now considered, the bearing-bar 10 is rotatably supported by a bracket-stand 12, suitably adapted to be removably seated on a boat or the like, as 14, and including a shank 15, carrying upwardly-extending arms 24 at one end and preferably rendered rectangular in cross-section and formed with a downwardly-projecting stem 16 at the opposite end, disposed substantially at right augles and likewise rectangular in cross-section and preferably cousistingof an end portion of the shank bent at the desired angle thereto.

vThis stem is adapted to removably fit in a suitable socket 17, of like form in cross-section, arranged at the desired point on the boat for proper application of the bearingbar, as will be presently understood. This socket is conveniently formed in a metallic socket-plate, as 18, adapted to insure rigid support of the bearing-bar and consisting of a rectangular section of plate metal having the socket located centrally therein and preferably extended downwardly by conveniently forming a flange 19 on the under surface of the plate, and as now considered this socketplate is seated on the stern of the boat and iiecured in place by suitable bolts 21 or the ike.

In the present construction of the bracketstand the arms 24 comprise suitable oppositely-disposed furcations of the shank extendingsubstantiallyatrightangles theretoin the same plane and having their end portions bent upwardly to form stems 23, having suitablejournals22 attheuppcrendsfortheaxisof the bearing-bar and formedof suitable length to support the said bar the required distance above the shank to freely pass the not over the gunwale. These stems are preferably given a slight inclination outwardly, so as to cause the bearing-bar to rest outboard when the bracket-stand is disposed as in Fig. 1 or when turned to the port or starboard, and to cause the bearing-bar to stand inboard when the position of said bracket is reversed and which can be readily moved to either of said positions by reason of the square stem and socket, which form of the same also insures arigid unyielding position of the device.

As now considered, the journals for the axis of the bearing-bar consist of suitable apertures or eyes 25, conveniently formed in the upper end of the stems 23, and said axis consists of suitable lug screws 26, passed through said eyes and screwed into respective ends of the bearing-bar.

In use the device is ordinarily positioned as indicated in Fig. 1. The bearing-bar 10 acts as an outboard-bearing to support the net clear of the gunwale at the point of the stern, and in casting same it simply requires that a few fathoms be first passed out, when the balance of the not will be thereby drawn from the boat into the Water without assistance from the fisherman, who simply applies the oars to propel the boat, and when the net is being drawn in it may be readily laid in proper condition in the boat with the leads and corks clear, as no effort or attention is required to keep it clear of the gunwale.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patentof the United States of America, is-

1. The combination with a boat; of a bracket-stand including a shank and upwardly-extending arms inclined outwardly from the perpendicular, means to removably seat said stand on the boat with said arms lying either inboard or outboard, and a bearing-bar supported on said arms."

2. The combination with a boat; of a bracket-stand comprising a shank, upwardlyextending arms inclined outwardly from the perpendicular and a downwardly-extending stem, a socket-plate arranged on the boat to removably receive the stem of said bracket with said arms lying either inboard or outboard, and a bearing-bar rotatably supported on said arms.

3. The combination with a boat; of a bracket-stand comprising a horizontally-disposed shank, upwardly-extending arms at one end of said shank inclined outwardly from the. perpendicular and a downwardlyprojecting square stem at the opposite end, a socket-plate on said boat adjacent the gunwale and having a square socket, and a bearing-bar supported on said arms.

4:. The combination with a boat; of a rotatable, net-supporting bearing-bar having a guard-flange at each end, and a bracket-stand comprising a horizontally-disposed shank, oppositely disposed, upwardly projecting, bar-supporting arms at one end of the shank inclined outwardly from the perpendicular and a downwardly-projecting stem at the opposite end, and means carried by said boat to removably seat said shank with the bar lying clear of the gunwale either inboard or outboard.

5. The combination with a boat; of a rotatable net supporting bearing bar having a guard-flange at each end formed with the inner side face conical, a bracket-stand comprising a horizontally-disposed shank having oppositely disposed upwardly projecting arms at one end inclined outwardly from the perpendicular and each having a journal for the axis of said bar, a downwardly-projecting square stem. at the opposite end, and a socket-plate on said boat having a square socket adapted to removably receive said stem with the shank-extending to either beam or fore or aft.

6. The combination with a boat; of a netsupporter comprising a wooden roller 10 having a flange 11 at each end formed with the inner side surface conical, bracket-stand 12 consisting of a shank 15 having a stem 16 and arms 24 each formed with upwardly-extending stems 23 having journal-apertures at the upper ends, lug-screws 26 fittingin said journals and screwed into the ends of said roller, a socket-plate 18 seated on the stern of said boat and having a downwardly-projecting flange 19 and asquare socket 17 in said plate and flange adapted to removably seat said stem 16 with the shank of said bracket extending to either beam or fore or aft.

Signed at Seattle, Washington, this 24th day of April, 1902.

' LUTHER EINARSON.

Witnesses:

W. PARRY SMITH, D. C. HAY. 

